Display for analyzing and optimizing medical resource consumption

Abstract

An interactive display may be configured to provide inpatient data for analysis and optimization of medical resource consumption. The inpatient data may be associated with cost information for one or more service matters for one or more discharges.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of optimization of medical resource consumption, the method comprising:
 receiving, by a computer processor, from a remote computer, inpatient data directed to cost information for one or more service matters for a plurality of discharges;   for each of the plurality of discharges, classifying, by the computer processor, the received inpatient data into a plurality of Diagnosis Related Groups (DRG)s;   generating, by the computer processor, a plurality of clusters of physicians via a k-means method, wherein the plurality of clusters of physicians is based on a consumption of the one or more service matters for each of the plurality of DRGs, and wherein the plurality of clusters are generated iteratively by the computer processor to determine an optimal number of clusters based on an overall R-Square value, wherein a plurality of responsible physicians (RP)s with identical consumption across the one or more service matters within each of the plurality of DRGs are assigned to the same cluster;   on a condition that the received inpatient data contains cost information at a service item level, for each consumption of the one or more service matters with one of the plurality of DRGs, determining by the computer processor, a plurality of conflict indexes across the plurality of clusters of physicians based on a cost incurred for consumption of the one or more service matters;   receiving feedback from a remote user computer;   generating a visualization based on the feedback; and   transmitting the visualization to interactively display on the remote user computer display, in an interactive dashboard, the plurality of conflict indexes for each of the plurality of DRGs and the one or more service matters having the greatest potential for cost savings, wherein user interaction with the interactive dashboard displaying the plurality of conflict indexes causes display of the consumption across the one or more service matters for each of the plurality of discharges for each of the one or more clusters.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the inpatient data is inpatient data for one hospital or inpatient data for a plurality of hospitals in a particular grouping. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein on a condition that the received inpatient data includes charge information and does not contain cost information at a service item level, the charge information is adjusted to costs using cost to charge ratios (RCC)s while excluding or correcting outlier RCCs and missing RCCs to form a costed discharge record as the received inpatient data. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the RP is assigned to a cluster on a condition that the number of cases that the RP takes care for the same DRG is more than a threshold minimum cases number (nc), and on a condition that the number of RPs taking care of one DRG is more than the threshold minimum physicians number (np). 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising determining a potential cost savings opportunity wherein the potential cost savings opportunity is a variance between an actual cost and an optimal cost based on resource consumption. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5  further comprising interactively displaying the potential cost savings opportunities on the remote user computer display. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising classifying the plurality of DRGs with an All Patient Refined Diagnosis Related Group (APR DRG). 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein on a condition that the APR DRG is surgical, an RP is a first entry in another physician location of a Uniform Bill, and on a condition that the other physician location is empty, an attending physician is used as the RP, and on a condition that the attending physician is empty, no RP is assigned, or on a condition that the APR DRG is not surgical, the RP is an attending physician, and on a condition that the attending physician is empty, no RP is assigned. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein a conflict index value is calculated for each consumption dimension within one DRG as 
       
         
           
             
               
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       in which N is a number of RPs for the DRG, C is a number of clusters, within one of the DRGs for one consumption dimension, Yi is the average cost for RP, Y-bar is the mean of the average cost among all physicians for the DRG, Yc-hat is an average physician cost in cluster. 
     
     
         10 . A system for optimization of medical resource consumption comprising:
 a computer comprising a computer processor configured to receive inpatient data from a remote computer, wherein the inpatient data is directed to cost information for one or more service matters for a plurality of discharges, wherein the computer processor is further configured to classify, for each of the plurality of discharges, the received inpatient data into a plurality of Diagnosis Related Groups (DRG)s;   the computer processor configured to generate a plurality of clusters of physicians via a k-means method, wherein the plurality of clusters of physicians is based on a consumption of the one or more service matters for each of the plurality of DRGs, and generate the plurality of clusters iteratively to determine an optimal number of clusters based on an overall R-Square value, wherein a plurality of responsible physicians (RP)s with identical consumption across the one or more service matters within each of the plurality of DRGs are assigned to the same cluster and for each consumption of the one or more service matters with one of the plurality of DRGs;   on a condition that the received inpatient data contains cost information at a service matter level, determine a plurality of conflict indexes across the plurality of clusters based on a cost incurred for consumption of the one or more service matters;   the computer processor configured to receive feedback from a remote user computer;   the computer processor configured to generate a visualization based on the feedback; and   the computer processor configured to transmit the visualization to interactively display on the remote user computer display, in an interactive dashboard, the plurality of conflict indexes for each of the plurality of DRGs and the one or more service matters having the greatest potential for cost savings, wherein user interaction with the interactive dashboard displaying the plurality of conflict indexes causes display of the consumption across the one or more service matters for each of the plurality of discharges for each of the one or more clusters.   
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the inpatient data is inpatient data for one hospital or inpatient data for a plurality of hospitals in a particular grouping. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein on a condition that the received inpatient data includes charge information and does not contain cost information at a service item level, the charge information is adjusted to costs using cost to charge ratios (RCC)s while excluding or correcting outlier RCCs and missing RCCs to form a costed discharge record as the received inpatient data. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the RP is assigned to a cluster on a condition that the number of cases that the RP takes care for the same DRG is more than a threshold minimum cases number (nc), and on a condition that the number of RPs taking care of one DRG is more than the threshold minimum physicians number (np). 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the computer processor is further configured to determine a potential cost savings opportunity wherein the potential cost savings opportunity is a variance between an actual cost and an optimal cost based on resource consumption. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the computer processor is further configured to interactively display the potential cost savings opportunities on the remote user computer display. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the computer processor is further configured to classify the plurality of DRGs with an All Patient Refined Diagnosis Related Group (APR DRG). 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein on a condition that the APR DRG is surgical, an RP is a first entry in another physician location of a Uniform Bill, and on a condition that the other physician location is empty, an attending physician is used as the RP, and on a condition that the attending physician is empty, no RP is assigned, or on a condition that the APR DRG is not surgical, the RP is an attending physician, and on a condition that the attending physician is empty, no RP is assigned. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein a conflict index value is calculated for each consumption dimension within one DRG as 
       
         
           
             
               
                 Conflict 
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                 Index 
               
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         in which N is a number of RPs for the DRG, C is a number of clusters, within one of the DRGs for one consumption dimension, Yi is the average cost for RP, Y-bar is the mean of the average cost among all physicians for the DRG, Yc-hat is an average physician cost in cluster.